Talk:School Raze - Part 2/@comment-4531340-20181021124450
Finally getting around to writing this comment - a week later. Ugh. Anyway, this was a great finale, one of my favorites (in fact, I think it's tied with seasons 4 and 5 as my favorite). I've seen some criticisms about how the episode is too busy, has too many plot threads or whatever. I can see how that would be a point of contention, but I disagree - I think it was essential to see the Mane Six's trip to Tartarus. It helped to set the mood, as well as to explain what was going on (I like that the episode showed the work of the Mane Six learning who was behind it all, and how she knew what to do - plus some more magic lore/worldbuilding). It was definitely the B-plot, however (in the sense that I found the stuff with Cozy Glow, the School, and the Young Six more compelling). If there is one plot thread that I could criticize the episode about, however, it would probably be the role the CMC played (and even then, only because the summary implied they would be playing a more major role than what they ended up with). Even then, I like how it was realistic, in that you're not gonna just try one thing to stop something as cataclysmic as magic permanently vanishing from Equestria, so even if the CMC, or Neighsay (teleporting to alert the princesses), or even the Mane Six didn't really play a role in stopping Cozy until the very end, it really helped to sell just how dire the situation was. As for that main storyline, wow, was Cozy ever convincing. I mean, I suspected ahead of time that she was going to be the big bad of the finale, and from her cutie mark, as well as what she'd shown in previous episodes, I figured she was a skilled manipulator, but during that scene where she was able to successfully maneuver the ponies of the school into overthrowing Neighsay, she genuinely impressed (and even kinda terrified) me. Her over-the-top cuteness was almost simultaneously sickening and believable. Plus, that stinger at the end - I would be shocked if she doesn't play a major role in season 9, somehow. Also, have to say, I feel it was justified that she was sent to Tartarus for what she did (I mean, among other things, she set the spell to activate for when there would be non-Pegasi in Cloudsdale, being kept up there by a cloudwalking spell - at best, she didn't care about what could happen, at worst, she wanted it that way), though I do wonder about putting her right next to Tirek. The only other thing that I can think to really criticize is how we didn't get any backstory for Cozy, but that could easily be rectified next season. Finally, I want to talk about the ending, with the Tree of Harmony saving the Young Six - it might be a little deus ex machina, but I think it was justified, because the Tree seems to be able to see what is the so-called proper path of events (look at the season 5 finale for a really good example of this) and now it would seem it has the power to put things in motion in order to keep events going along that proper path (whether that's correcting for the path that some dark force is leading Equestria down, which it could just be, or whether it's actively steering the course of events to the path most advantageous to Equestria). I also think the groundwork was laid back in What Lies Beneath, where it tests the Young Six and sees the strength of their friendship, and judges them to be worthy vessels to receive its help. I also think it has something to do with the artifacts introduced back in A Matter of Principals (note how each student is sent to dismantle their culture's artifact), but whether those artifacts, in conjunction with the Tree, produced a new Elements of Harmony-type of magic usable by those six going forward, I can't say - that would obviously be speculation (and I don't feel like speculating on that until we get more information). I have some theories as to why Cozy Glow would make the spell in the roots of the Tree, where it is especially capable of influencing the goings-on, but this comment is long enough as is, so I'll just make a new one. One more observation is that I find it funny, how the show went from my least favorite two-part finale (Shadow Play) right into one of my favorites the next season.